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Show Pi0 SCOTT WATSON (, 1926, Wotern Newspaper Union.) Pirate Who Became a Judge IT IS difficult to characterize the anomalous career of the pirate known as Captain Cohham of Poole in Dorsetshire. Perhaps "cherchez la femme" would be one way to do It, for back of most of the deviltries of this pirate leader appears the sinister form of Maria Cobham, one of the most notorious of women pirates, and certainly the most bloodthirsty. But not all of the blame for Cobham's cruelties cruel-ties can be laid to the tigerish Maria. He was well drilled in infamy before ever he took her aboard his ship to become his partner in crime, and there was but little he could learn from her. He had started young. At the age of eighteen he was a notorious ladies' man and accomplished smuggler. On one occasion he landed a cargo of 10,-000 10,-000 gallons of French brandy at Poole after successfully evading the king's patrol boats which were attempting to put a stop to the smuggling. A little later, however, his boat was captured and this so annoyed the young smuggler smug-gler that be bought a cutter at Bridg-port, Bridg-port, placed an armament of 14 guns on her and, collecting a choice crew of cutthroats, set "out upon account." His first exploit In piracy was an unusually daring and successful one. Off the Mersey he intercepted a big East India merchantman, boarded her and made the crew prisoners. From this ship he took more than 40,000 pounds; then he scuttled the ship and calmly watched the crew drown. Next he put in at Plymouth and it was there that he met Maria who was willing will-ing enough to accept his Invitation to come aboard with him and make a living by robbery on the high seas. By this time his fame had spread so that the English channel became too dangerous for his operations. So he sailed across the Atlantic and lay In wait for ships between Cape BretoD and Prince Edward Isle. He took several sev-eral prizes and Invariably disposed of the crews in some heartless manner. On one occasion he sewed up the unfortunate un-fortunate sailors in sacks and ordered his villains to toss them overboard. Eventually Cobham decided to retire from piracy, but Maria would have none of It, for he had not yet secured enough wealth to satisfy her. So he reluctantly continued his career until he had gathered together a considerable consider-able fortune. Then he purchased a large estate near Havre, and after one final fling at the trade settled down to a peaceful retirement. He not only settled down but became eminently emi-nently respectable, and to cap the climax cli-max of his strange career was made a magistrate and presided at the county coun-ty courts. When he died at an advanced ad-vanced age, he left many descendants who, we are assured by one historian, "were moving in the first grade ' at Havre I" Most Notorious Woman Pirate WHEN the "damsel Maria" came aboard the ship of Captain Cobham, Cob-ham, the noted pirate of the English channel, there were murmurs of discontent dis-content among the crew. But the freebooters free-booters soon quit their grumbling for they found that Maria was a distinct addition to any aggregation of cutthroats. cut-throats. More than that, she was often a friend In need for them. Discipline on Captain Cobham's ship was severe. The slightest offense by any member of the crew was sufficient to give him a taste of the cat-o'-nine-tails and Captain Cap-tain Cobham was not famous for sparing spar-ing the rod. But time after time, Maria used her influence with the captain cap-tain to get an offending sailor excused for some dereliction or his punishment lessened and her popularity . grew apace. She won their admiration, too, for among a band where cruelty was x virtue she demonstrated unusual capability cap-ability for cold-blooded ferocity. On one occasion she plunged her own little dirk into the heart of a Liverpool captain cap-tain whose ship had fallen a victim to the pirates and on another it was her whim to have a captain and his two mates tied up to the windlass, whereupon where-upon she coolly shot them with her pistol. When Captain Cobham wished to retire re-tire she urged him on to continue his piracies, for she had set her heart upon his buying her beautiful Mapleton hall, near Poole, where she had visions ot ruling as a grand lady. At last, however, how-ever, the captain had made enough ol a fortune to satisfy her and she agreed to his retirement. One final act ol Maria's heartlessness preceded theli retirement. Cobham had captured ar East India merchantman and carried the crew aboard his ship in irons Maria put poison In their food. "Thi dogs are crowding our ship," she toh the captain. After Cobham and his Maria hai bought an estate near Havre and set tied down they kept a little pleasun yacht In a private harbor on the os tate. One day he and Maria went oui on a fishing expedition and came upoi a brig becalmed near by. Cobham urn his crew went on hoard 'to visit th captain of the merchantman. Wliei they saw evidences of a rich cargo the old pirate spirit surged up in tlieii hearts. Cobluim shot the captain am Maria and his crew quickly dispose of the remainder. Although Cohhai' settled down to a quiet life and Ik came a magistrate, Maria could nc endure such a life and she n'l-d I with poison. |